Multi-seal press



Nov. 4,1969 v. w. CORNELIUS MULTI-SEAL PRESS 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July12. 1955 FIG.2

Nov. 4, 1969 v. w. CORNELIUS 3,476,632

MULTI-S EAL PRESS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 12 1955 FIG.3

FIG. 4

Nov. 4, 1969 v. w. CORNELIUS 3,476,632

MUL'I I-S EAL PRESS Filed July 12 195s s Sheets-Sheet s United StatesPatent Ofi ice 3,476,632 Patented Nov. 4, 1969 US. Cl. 156-366 7 ClaimsABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A method and machine for producing menushaving thermosetting adhesive backed cutouts depicting food dishes atpre-selected positions on a printed menu. The machine includes acarriage movable along a pair of rails and carrying a heated vacuumpick-up head for each cutout. The carriage is movable from a cutoutdelivery station where a set of support stools are raised against thevacuum pick-up heads, to a menu support station, the top menu of a stackis pressed upwardly against the cutouts carried by the pick-up heads toaifix the cutouts to the top menu. The top menu is then transported tothe final receiving station by the carriage as the carriage returns tothe delivery station.

This invention relates generally to the printing art, and moreparticularly relates to a machine for applying one or more smalladhesive backed sheets at predetermined locations on a larger sheet.

As is well known in the printing art, it is customary in the restauranttrade for each restaurant to have a distinctively designed menu. Theappearance of a menu can be enhanced by color pictures of selecteddishes of the house. for example, a color picture of a steak might bepositioned adjacent the list of steak entrees, a picture of a sandwichnext to the sandwich entrees, a fish platter adjacent the seafoodentrees, etc. It is, however, considerably more expensive to print sucha menu, when compared to a more standard menu having merely a list ofthe entrees printed in a single color such as black, because of the costof preparing the food dishes, taking and developing color pictures,preparing the color printing plates with the different pictures in theproper position, and finally printing the pictures in color. Then thestandard printing procedure must be followed to print the list ofentrees. Since each restaurant can normally use only a relatively smallnumber of menus, the increased cost per menu becomes very significant.

In an attempt to reduce the cost of menus, it has become common in thetrade to use the same photographs of rather standard dishes for a largenumber of restaurants. This substantially reduces the cost of thephotographs, but still requires special plates if a distinctive,customized layout is desired because it will normally be necessary tolocate the pictures at different positions on the menu. The cost can befurther reduced by printing large numbers of standardized blanks havingselected pictures at predetermined locations. The list of entrees foreach restaurant can then be printed in the appropriate related blankspaces on the standard format. Of course, this considerably limits thedegree of freedom which may be exercised in laying out the menu toattain the desired distinctiveness for each restaurant.

An important object of this invention is to provide a method for moreeconomically producing menus having color pictures of various selecteddishes representative of those served by the restaurant.

Another object of the invention is to provide a machine forautomatically applying a large number of small cutouts or seals to asingle large sheet at a relatively high rate of speed.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a machine forapplying such cutouts by a thermosensitive adhesive.

Still another object is to provide such a machine which can accuratelyapply the cutouts to substantially any preselected position on thelarger sheet.

Still another object is to provide such a machine wherein the positionsof the smaller sheets on the larger sheets may be determined veryquickly and simply, yet with considerable precision.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a machine which isrelatively simple and inexpensive to construct and yet which operateswith precision.

In accordance with one important aspect of this invention, a set ofrestaurant menus or the like is prepared by first photographing a numberof different food dishes. Each of the photographs is then reproduced inquantity by conventional printing processes. Each .individual picture isthen cut out to produce a quantity of separate picture cutouts of eachdish. The list of entrees for the menu of a particular restaurant isthen laid out and printed on each of a number of menu sheets so as toleave space on each sheet for one or more of the picture cutouts. Thepicture cutouts are then bonded to the appropriate spaces on the menusheets. In accordance with a more specific aspect of the invention, thepicture cutouts are in color.

In accordance with another important aspect of the invention, a machineis provided for automatically applying the picture cutouts to thepreselected positions on menu sheets which comprise a number of deliverystools located at selectable positions at a delivery station, theselected positions corresponding to the locations where the respectivecutouts are to be bonded to the menu, a carriage means having acorresponding number of correspondingly positioned pick-up heads forlifting one cutout at a time from each delivery stool, means for holdinga stack of menu sheets at an application station, means for moving thecarriage means from the delivery station to the application station, andmeans for moving the cutouts on the delivery stools and the pick-upheads on the carriage into engagement to transfer a cutout to eachpick-up head and for moving the stack of sheets and the cutouts carriedby each pick-up head into engagement with the stack of larger sheets toapply the cutouts to preselected positions on the top menu sheet of thestack.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the meansfor moving the delivery stools and the pick-up heads into engagement andfor moving the stack of sheets and the pick-up heads into engagementcomprises a delivery pallet supporting the delivery stools, and meansfor moving the delivery pallet toward the pickup heads of the carriagemeans when the carriage means is at the delivery station to bring thedelivery stools into engagement with the pick-up heads; and anapplication pallet for supporting the stack of sheets, and means formoving the application pallet toward the pick-up heads when the carriagemeans is at the application station to bring the top menu sheet on thestack into contact with the cutouts carried by the pick-up heads.

In accordance with another important aspect of the invention, thedelivery stools may be moved substantialy at random to selectablepositions on the delivery pallet, and the pick-up heads may be moved tocorresponding positions on the carriage so that the cutouts can beapplied to substantially any preselected positions on the menu sheets.

The invention also contemplates a novel delivery stool for retaining astack of cutouts which is comprised of a support disk for the stack ofcutouts, a plurality of guide pins reciprocally extending through thesupport disk to retain and properly orient the stack of cutouts on thesupport disk, and means for biasing the guide pins through the supportdisk whereby as the delivery stools engage 3 the pick-up heads, theguide pins will be reciprocally retracted through the suport disk topermit the pick-up head to move in close proximity to the stack ofcutouts. The invention further contemplates that the pick-up heads willbe vacuum operated and will include a heating element such that athermally sensitive adhesive may be used to bond the cutouts to thelarger sheet. Also, a spacing means is provided to maintain the vacuumpickup heads spaced from the uppermost cutout of the stack and means isprovided to direct an air jet transversely of the stack to insure thatonly one cutout is retained by the vacuum pick-up head during eachdelivery operation.

The novel features believed characteristic of this invention are setforth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well asother objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood byreference to the following detailed description of an ilustrativeembodiment, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of a machine constructed inaccordance with the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a rear elevational view of the machine of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an end elevational view of the right-hand end of the machineillustrated in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a top view of the delivery pallet of the machine of FIGURE1;

FIGURE 5 is a top view of the carriage of the machine of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 6 is a side elevational view of a delivery stool for suporting astack of adhesive backed picture cutouts or the like and of the pick-upand bonding head; and

FIGURE 7 is a sectional view of the delivery stool and pick-up head ofFIGURE 6 which serves to illustrate the operation of the devices.

Referring now to the drawings, a machine constructed in accordance withthe present invention is indicated generaly by the reference numeral 10.The machine 10 has a generally rectangular support frame with fourupright corner posts 12-15. The upper ends of the corner posts areinterconnected by longitudinally extending angle iron members 16 and 17and by a pair of end members, only one of which is shown at 18. Thelower ends of the corner posts are interconnected at points a shortdistance off the floor by longitudinally extending angle iron members 20and 21 and by end members which are disposed at the same height but arenot illustrated.

A pair of elongated rails 22 and 24 are supported by blocks 26 and 28and extend generally parallel for the length of the frame. A deliverystation indicated generally by the reference numeral 30 is located atone end of the rails 22 and 24, and application station indicatedgenerally by the reference numeral 32 is disposed at the opposite end ofthe rails 22 and 24, and a final receiving station indicated generallyby the reference numeral 34 is disposed between the delivery andapplication stations 30 and 32. These stations will now be described indetail.

The delivery station 30 includes a transverse support channel 40 (seeFIGURE 3) which is supported at its opposite ends by upright channelmembers 42 and 44 (see FIGURES l and 2) which in turn are supported onlongitudinal members 20 and 21, respectively. The cylinder of a fluidlinear actuator 46, such as an air cylinder and piston, is mounted atthe center of the cross channel 40. The piston rod of the linearactuator is connected to raise and lower a pallet indicated generally bythe reference numeral 48. The pallet 48 is comprised of a rectangularframe including members 50 and 51 which interconnect side rails 52 and53 and a perforated layout board 54 which is slidably received inchannels 56 and 58 formed by the members 52 and 53. A block 55 is usedto lock the perforated layout board 54 in place and when the block isremoved, the layout board 54 can be easily removed from the palletassembly 48 for layout purposes which will hereafter become moreevident. A

pair of guide rails 60 and 62 extend from the tops of the uprightchannels 42 and 44, respectively, to the upper longitudinal members 16and 17, respectively, and receive suitable projections (not illustrated)on the edges of the pallet to guide the pallet as it is raised andlowered by the fluid actuator 46.

A plurality of delivery stools for holding a stack of adhesive backedpicture cutouts are positioned at selectable locations on the layoutboard 54 of the pallet 48. Four delivery stools 64, 65, 66 and 67 areillustrated. Each of the stools is substantially identical andaccordingly only the stool 64 illustrated in FIGURES 6 and 7 will bedescribed in detail. The stool 64 is comprised of a base plate 68 whichrests on the layout board 54 and is bolted in position thereon by bolts70'. An upright tubular stem 72 extends from the plate 68. A sleeve 74is slidably disposed around the stem 72 and a second disk 76 is affixedto the upper end of the sleeve 74. A coil spring 78 is disposed betweenthe disk 76 and an annular flange 80 on the sleeve 74 to urge the sleeveand disk 76 upwardly. A snap ring 82 is positioned at the upper end ofthe stem 72 to limit the upward movement of the disk 76.

A rod 84 is reciprocally disposed inside the tubular stem 72 and restson a coil spring 86 disposed within the stem. A support disk 88 isconnected to the upper end of the rod 84 and a plurality of apertures 90are formed in the disk 88. A guide rod 92 passes through each of theapertures 90 and rests on the disk 76. A spacing sleeve 94 is positionedaround each rod 92 and rests on the disk 88. A guide rod 96 is threadedinto the base plate 68 and is locked in place by a nut 98. The rod 96extends through apertures in the disk 76 and in the support disk 88 toprevent rotation of the disks. The rod 96 terminates well below theupper end of the spacing sleeves 94 when the guide rods 92 are depressedduring the pickup action as will hereafter be described in greaterdetail.

The apertures 90 and therefore the rods 92 and sleeves 94 are sopositioned on the disk 88 as to orient a stack of picture cutouts 100.Each of the cutouts 100 is typically a cutout color picture of aparticular food dish and will usually be of round or an irregular shapeso that the guide rods 92 may be spaced differently on the severalstools. In the embodiment described, each of the cutouts is backed witha thermally sensitive adhesive.

The cutouts 100 are fluttered during the pickup by air jets directedtransversely through the stack by a plurality of orifices 102 in anupright air pressure manifold 104 disposed adjacent each of the stools.Each manifold 104 may comprise merely a closed end tubular member whichis threaded into a T 106 which in turn is threaded onto a stern 108. Thestem 108 is provided with a threaded bolt 110 extending from the lowerend through an aperture in the layout board 54 and secured in place by awing not 112. A flexible air line 114 is connected to the T 106 andextends to a pressure manifold 116. The manifold 116 is secured to andmoves with the pallet 48. A separate valve 118 controls air to each ofthe flexible lines 114.

Referring to FIGURE 4, it will be noted that the apertures 102 areoriented to form a grid so that one or more of the delivery stools andthe associated air jet manifold for fiufling the cutouts may be locatedat substantially any predetermined positions on the layout board 54.

A carriage assembly, indicated generally by the reference numeral 120,is comprised of a rectangular frame formed by longitudinally extendingmembers 122 and 124 and transversely extending members 126 and 128, ascan best be seen in FIGURE 5. Each of the frame members is provided witha plurality of tapped apertures 130 at spaced points around theperiphery thereof, The frame is disposed between the rails 22 and 24 andis suspended at each of the four corners from upright plates 132 androllers 134 which ride on the rails 22 and 24. A plurality of arms136439 are connected to the frame members 126 and 12 8 by bolts 135which are passed through elongated slots in the bars and threaded intothe tapped apertures 130. Thus it will be appreciated that the arms 136-139 may be adjusted so that the ends thereof are in substantially anyposition relative to the layout board 54 and that additional arms may besupplied as required. Each of the arms 136-130 supports a heated vacuumpickup head assembly indicated generally by the reference numerals1.40-143, respectively. Each of .the pick-up heads is of identicalconstruction and only the head 140, which is illustrated in FIGURES 6and 7, will bedescribed in detail. The'pick-up head 140 has a hollowmetal vacuum head 146 having a fiat base 148. The vacuum head 146 issupported by a tubular stem 150 which is in fluid communication with theinterior of the vacuum head 146 and with a flexible vacuum line 152. Aplurality of small orifices 154 are provided in the face 148 so thaf'apaper cutout will be picked up by the head when a vacuum is drawn on theflexible line 152. An electrical heating element 156 having a suitableconventional resistance heating filament is disposed on the vacuumpick-up head 146. A conventional automatic temperature control system(not illustrated) maintains the vacuum pick-up head at a preselectedtemperature. The tubular stem 150 is reciprocally disposed in the arm136. The downward movement of the stem is limited by a stop 160, androtary movement of the stem is limited by the guide pin 162 whichextends from the stop 160 through a bore in the arm 136. The head 146 isbiased into the downward position by a coil spring 164 which actsbetween a lower sleeve 166 and an upper sleeve 168. The lower positionis illustrated in FIG- URE 6. 1

Two more arms 184 and 186 are adjustably connected to the carriage framemember 128. Resilient suction cups 188 and 190 are suspended from thearms 184, 186, respectively, .by tubular members each indicated by thereference numeral 192. The purpose of the suction cups 188 and 190 is tolift a completed menu from the application station and transfer it tothe final station as will hereafter be described in greater detail.

A control panel indicated generally by the reference numeral 200 issupported by uprights 202 on the carriage 120. The control panel 200includes the automatic temperature control and power source heretoforementioned for the heating elements on the respective pick-up heads. Thetemperature control includes a temperature indicating dial 204,temperature control knobs 206, and a plurality of electrical sockets 208for receiving the electrical leads to the respective heating elements156. Switches 210 control these electrical outputs.

As can best be seen in FIGURE 3, a pair of separate air manifolds 212and 214 are mounted on the supports 202 and therefore move with thecarriage 120. Flexible conduits 191 from the two suction cups 188 and190 are connected to the upper manifold 212, and the flexible conduits152 from the vacuum pick-up heads 140-143 extend to the lower manifold214.

The carriage 120 is moved along the rail 22 and 24 by means of a fluidlinear actuator 230, such as an air cylinder and piston. The cylinder ofthe actuator is pivotally connected to the frame at pivot pin 232, andthe piston rod is pivotally connected to an arm 234 by a pivot pin 236.The arm 234 is pivotally connected to the lower longitudinal framemember 21 by a pivot pin 238. A fixed pin 240 at the upper end of thearm 234 is slidably disposed in a slot in an arm 242 which is rigidlyfixed to the carriage frame. Thus when the piston rod is retracted intothe cylinder 230, the arm 234 is pivoted into position 234a shown indotted outline in FIGURE 2 to move the carriage 120 into position 120ashown in dotted outline. A pneumatic bumper 244 engages a stop (notillustrated) on the carriage to arrest the carriage in the properposition over the application station 32, and a suitable stop 245 isprovided to arrest the carriage in the proper position at the deliverystation 30 on the return of the carriage.

The application station 32 includes a transverse support similar to thetransverse support 40, which is sup ported by uprights 250 and 252 fromthe longitudinal lower members 20 and 21, respectively. The cylinder ofa fluid linear actuator 254 is supported on the cross member and thepiston rod (not illustrated) is connected to raise and lower a pallet256. A pair of guide channels 258 and 260 extends from the uprightsupports 250 and 252 to the upper longitudinal frame members 16 and 17and guide the pallet 256 as it is raised and lowered by the linearactuator 254. Stops 262 and 264 are connected to the guide channels 258and 260 to limit the downward movement of the pallet 256. A pair of sideboards 266 and 268 and end boards 270 and 272 are provided to hold astack of blank menu sheets 274 in predetermined position on the pallet256.

The final receiving station 34 is comprised of a fixed pallet 280 whichis suspended by four rods 282-285 from the flange of the upperlongitudinal frame members 16 and 17. A pair of side boards 286 and 288and a pair of end boards 290 and 292 are provided on the pallet tocontain the completed stack of menu sheets.

A pneumatic system for operating the machine 10 is comprised of an airpump assembly, indicated generally by reference numeral 300, which maybe conveniently supported on a frame (not illustrated) extendingtransversely between the two lower longitudinal frame members 20 and 21.The pneumatic system is comprised of an electric motor-driven air pumpwhich provides both a vacuum at its intake and air pressure at itsoutput. The output of the air pump is connected through suitableelectrically controlled valving to drive the fluid linear actuators 4 6,230 and 254 and is also connected to the manifold 116 to supply airpressure to the upright fluffing manifolds 104. The manifolds 212 and214 are alternatively connected to either the input or output of the airpump by suitable electrically controlled valves so that either vacuum orpressure may be applied to the pick-up heads -1-43 or the vacuum cups188 and 190. A suitable automatic timing means, such as a multicam shaftdriven by a timing motor, may be conveniently located in the box 310 forautomatically controlling the sequential operation of the machine 10 awill presently be described. Limit switches may be employed for variouscontrol functions such as for switching from a vacuum on the suctioncups 188 and 190 to a. positive pressure as the carriage passes over thereceiving station on its return from the application station to thedelivery station.

OPERATION When using the machine 10 to print a menu using the process ofthe present invention, a number of photographs of different food dishesare made and a supply of adhesive backed cutouts made from each of thephotographs. The layout artist uses a master sheet which has a series ofnumbered circles which are in the precise locations of the apertures102. These circles are identified in a suitable manner, such as bynumbering the rows from top to bottom with the characters of thealphabet and the columns from left to right with numerals. The layoutartist then selects one or more of the picture cutouts appropriate forthe list of entrees for the set of menus which he is laying out. Theentree lists and the picture cutouts are then positioned such that theproper balance and aesthetic appeal is attained, with the picturecutouts always being centered over one of the reference circles.

Next, the layout board 54 is removed from the frame of the pallet 48,and the delivery stools for the picture cutouts selected are centeredover the holes 102 in the layout board which correspond to the circleson the layout sheet over which the color pictures are centered, and thestools are secured in place by the bolts 70. A stack of the appropriatepicture cutouts are placed on the re spective stools between the spacersleeves 94 such that the cutouts will be substantially centered over thereference hole. The layout board 54 is then returned to the frame of thepallet 48, the flufiing manifolds 104 connected in position on thelayout board, and the flexible line 114 for each manifold 104 connectedto the manifold 116. Next the arms 136-139 are adjusted such that thepick-up heads 140-143 are centered over the respective stools. A stackof blank menu sheets are then placed on the pallet 256 and the vacuumheads heated to the desired temperature. The machine is then ready foroperation.

At the beginning of a cycle, the carriage 120 is centered at thedelivery station 30. The timing control system 310 then applies air tothe linear actuator 46 to raise the pallet 48. As each stool rises intocontact with the corresponding pickup head, the rods 92 are firstdepressed against the force of the spring 78 until the head contacts thespacing sleeves 94, as illustrated in FIGURE 7. The spacing sleeves 94insure that the heated vacuum head 146 does not compress the stack ofcutouts 100 and activate the heat sensitive adhesive. The pallet 48continues to move upwardly a short distance to insure a firm contactbetween all vacuum pick-up heads and the respective stools. The springs164 and 86 permit this additional movement. During retraction of theguide rods, the rods 96 and 162 maintain the members properly aligned.After the vacuum pick-up head 146 has contacted the upper ends of therods 92, air is jetted out from the apertures 102 to flulf the stack ofcutouts 100 and a vacuum is applied to the manifold 214 and thus to therespective vacuum pick-up heads so that only one cutout will be held bythe vacuum against each of the pick-up heads. The jet of air from theorifices 102 then terminates and the pallet 48 is lowered to itsoriginal position.

Next the carriage 120 is moved to the application station 32 byoperation of the linear actuator 230 and the pivoted arm 234. After thecarriage has been properly centered over the application station, thelinear actuator 2S4 raises the pallet 256 until the top menu on thestack supported by the pallet 256 is pressed firmly against the bottomsof the cutouts carried by the several pick-up heads 146. The springs 164provide the proper loading to press the cutouts firmly against theuppermost blank menu of the stack of menus, regardless of the height ofthe stack. The pick-up heads are continuously heated to the preselectedtemperature so that the heat sensitive adhesive on the cutouts isactivated and the cutouts are securely bonded at the appropriateposition on the menu blank. While the blank menu is still pressedagainst the pick-up heads, the vacuum is reversed to pressure on thepick-up heads 146 and a vacuum is applied to the manifold 212 and thusto the suction cups 188 and 190. Then as the pallet 256 is lowered, theuppermost menu on the stack to which the cutouts have just been appliedhangs suspended by one edge from the suction cups. As soon as the pallet256 has lowered sufiiciently, the carriage 120 is then moved back towardthe delivery station 30 by the linear actuator 230 and as the carriage120 passes the final receiving station 34, the vacuum on the suctioncups is reversed to a positive air pressure so that the menu with thecutouts applied is dropped onto the pallet 280 within the confines ofthe side boards. The carriage then continues, without stopping, to thedelivery station 30 and the cycle is repeated.

The entree list may have been printed on the menu blanks prior to theapplication of the picture cutouts, or the entrees may be printed afterthe application of the cutouts.

From the above detailed description of the method of this invention ascarried out by the machine of the invention, it will be appreciated thata customized menu can be printed with a minimum of expense. A relativelylarged number of different pictures may be printed in quantity, thenused as required to provide greater fiexibility in designing a set ofmenus. A machine for carrying out the invention on an economical basishas also been described. The machine can be quickly set up to apply anyset of picture cutouts in any desired position on the menu withconsiderable precision and minimum effort. It is to be understood,however, that the method and particularly the machine is useful forpurposes other than the printing of menus.

Although preferred embodiments of the invention have been described indetail, it is to be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made therein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a machine for applying a plurality of adhesive backed cutouts topreselected positions on a larger sheet, the combination of:

a delivery station having a plurality of delivery stools atpreselectable spaced positions, each delivery stool including means forholding a stack of adhesive backed cutouts,

an application station including pallet means for holding a stack oflarger sheets,

a receiving station for receiving the stack of larger sheets,

elongated track means extending over the delivery station, theapplication station, and the receiving station,

a carriage movable along the track means over the delivery station, theapplication station and the receiving station having a plurality ofpick-up heads, selected pick-up heads being positioned to engageselected delivery stools, each pick-up head being adapted to retain asingle cutout from the respective delivery stool upon contact therewith,and selected pick-up heads being positioned to retain a sheet moved intocontact therewith,

means for moving the delivery stools into engagement with the respectivepick-up heads when the carriage is positioned at the delivery stationwhereby a cutout will be transferred to each pick-up head,

means for moving the carriage from the delivery station to theapplication station to the receiving station, and back to the deliverystation,

means for moving the pallet means toward the pick-up heads when thecarriage is positioned at the application station until the uppermostsheet of the stack on the pallet means is pressed against the cutoutscarried by the pick-up heads whereby the cutouts will be bonded to thepreselected positions on the sheet by the adhesive, and

means for causing the pick-up heads to retain the sheet pressed againstthe pick-up heads at the application station and to cause the pick-upheads to release the sheet as the carriage passes over the receivingstation.

2. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein each of the pick-up headsis a vacuum pick-up head and is heated to activate a thermally sensitiveadhesive on the cutouts.

3. The combination defined in claim 1 further characterized by:

control means for operating the machine to automatically, and insequence, move the delivery stools upwardly against the pick-up heads,lower the delivery stools, move the carriage from the delivery stationto the application station, move the pallet means upwardly toward thepick-up heads, lower the pallet means, and move the carriage from theapplication station over the receiving station back to the deliverystation.

4. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein:

each of the pick-up heads is vacuum operated, and wherein thecombination is further characterized by control! means for operatingthemachine to automatically, and in sequence move the delivery stoolsupwardly against the pick-up heads and place a vacuum on the selectedpick-up heads adapted to retain the cutouts, lower the delivery stools,move the carriage from the delivery station to the application station,move the pallet means upwardly against the pickup heads, place a vacuumon the selected pick-up heads for retaining the top sheet on the pallet,lower the pallet means, move the carriage past the receiving station tothe delivery station, and reverse the vacuum on the selected pick-upheads for retaining the top sheet as the carriage passes the receivingstation.

5. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein:

the pick-up heads are vacuum operated and each delivery stool iscomprised of: a

a support plate for supporting a stack of cutouts,

guide means extending from the support plate for laterally confining thestack of cutouts, the guide means being positioned to engage therespective pick-up head and prevent the pick-up head from engaging thestack of cutouts, and

means for directing a jet of air transversely through the stack ofcutouts after the guide means has engaged the pick-up head whereby onlyone cutout will be taken by the pick-up head.

6. The combination defined in claim 5 wherein:

the guide means is comprised of a plurality of rods which extend throughthe support plate,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,665,013 1/1954 Socke 21412,827,178 3/1958 Pagdin 214-1 XR 2,858,009 10/1958 Bainbridge 214-1 XR1,327,665 1/1920 Dun Lany 156560 XR 2,147,262 2/1939 Mandel 1565642,247,623 7/1941 Von Hofe 156-572 2,651,429 9/1953 Von Hofe 1565722,797,010 6/1957 Neer 156-561 XR HAROLD ANSHER, Primary Examiner G. W.MOXON II, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

